


Bonding Ritual

by ThatWildWolf



Category: Elder Scrolls, Elder Scrolls Online, Elder Scrolls Online: Murkmire
Genre: Argonians (Elder Scrolls), Arranged Marriage, F/M, Feel-good, Feelings Realization, Fictional Religion & Theology, Friendship/Love, Murkmire, Post-Canon, Spiritual, Tribal Setting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:08:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24485638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatWildWolf/pseuds/ThatWildWolf
Summary: Months after Mannimarco was defeated, Dakeera returns to Murkmire to visit her friends and observe the annual bonding ritual. Things don't exactly go as planned.
Relationships: Female Vestige/Xukas, Xukas (Elder Scrolls)/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 10





	Bonding Ritual

**Author's Note:**

> I LEARNED THE ENTIRE JEL LANGUAGE ONLY TO WRITE THIS 2K ONE-SHOT

Xukas tapped his foot on the wood of the docks, impatiently looking around until he finally saw a familiar snout among the tourists and adventures that came to Lilmoth.

"Sun's blessings, friend-Dakeera." He bowed his head. "I see you've not been scared off by the _questionable_ beauty of the Marsh."

"The sun shines brightly on you, Xukas." The young Argonian jumped off her horse. "It's been far too long."

"Ah, yes," he agreed. "Quite so. It was on the twentieth day of Sun's Dusk that you left Murkmire last. A long time, _beeko_."

She smirked. "You kept count?"

He crossed his arms. "It is my job to note off all important events for the tribe."

"I was one?" She asked. "Root-Herald, you flatter me. Although... Getting a welcoming reception like this, one could think something is afoot."

"It is. Tree-Minder Pavu asked me herself to go to Lilmoth and look for someone who might help our tribe - the Hist told her so. I... I assumed she meant a dryskin." He smiled shyly. "I don't anymore."

"The Bright-Throats are having trouble again?" Dakeera didn't even pretend she wasn't surprised. "I thought you had it all in control. You're a fine diplomat."

 _"Tlezoh, beeko._ My thanks. But it isn't something I can affect. It's the bonding ritual."

Dakeera grabbed her horse, Allie, by the reins and slowly led in the direction of the Lilmoth stables.

"What about the ritual?" she asked absent-mindedly.

Xukas adjusted his robe on his shoulder. "It's not the ritual in itself, but the suitors from the other tribes who have refused to cooperate. The tribes..." He smiled. "They are funny. Kind of like angered geckos or your little bark-dogs. They do a lot of fuss over small things. It falls to the Root-Heralds and the... I don't know the word in this tongue, the _Tzel-Nassa_ , to make sure it goes smoothly."

Dakeera stopped. "Let me get changed first." She looked down at her Bretonian armor, the remnant of her recent voyage to High Rock. "I do not want to look like a _liukul_ among my people."

 _"Lukiul,_ Dakeera- _naktis_ ," Xukas corrected her.

She closed her eyes and bowed her head with a smile. "You prove my point."

 **⊱ ── ── ──** ❈ **── ── ── ⊰**

Dakeera reached down to straighten her reed dress. She had been offered a traditional Bright-Throat outfit, but she had refused it for a less colorful Argonian dress that went better with her green scales.

"There you are," she heard. She spun around to see her old friend from Cyrodillic Collections, Walks-In-Ash. The Argonian had once irritated her, long before she first came to Black Marsh... Or rather to Murkmire. The Marsh proper hadn't done it for her, but visiting the - she still wasn't pleased with the name - Festering Jewel of the Black Marsh had been a turning point in her life. Made her realize she was a _lukiul_. From the Jel-tongue of the Hists, one that forgot their roots.

"Good to see you, _naktis_." She smiled. He raised his eyebrows, surprised at hearing her speak in Jel. "Hadn't expected to find you in Murkmire."

"I came with Famia," he explained. "And so I got to meet Lady Kassandra. A fine lady. Well, aside from the episodes of psychotic rage and trying to murder you, Jaxsik and Xukas."

"Yes..." Dakeera shook her head. "I... have got to go. It was a pleasure seeing you, Walks-In-Ash."

She went outside, took Allie from the stables, and set off in the direction of the Bright-Throat village. Allie, she thought, was not the most suitable name for an Argonian's mount. But she had gotten the horse in Skyrim and that was their way of naming. The people of Riften were the finest horsebreeders in all of Tamriel. She had gotten off good with her horse.

She raised her eyes from the road and pulled on the reins, causing Allie to halt with a neigh.

 _"Waxhuthi,"_ Dakeera whispered.

The Bright-Throat village was _full_. For such a small settlement, she hadn't expected to see so many people. They were exclusively Argonians, but she could tell the differences between different tribes and was suddenly aware how much she herself stood out.

She walked through the huts and bridges, surprised to learn that after a year, she still knew her way around.

"The suitors?" an Argonian exclaimed, stomping her foot on the ground. "They're absurdly unsuited, I say."

"It's our tradition," another Bright-Throat protested. "We've been doing it for generations and this year will be no different. There are always problems! So what?"

"Tone down. All I need is another _beek-ojel_ telling me what to do in my village."

Dakeera was about to ask what the argument was all about when she saw Xukas. He was dressed in a brightly-colored leather armor and had a healing staff holstered on his back, clearly prepared for journey. He was even holding a helmet in his hand.

"Please, egg-kin, have some civility. Fighting will not help anyone," he reasoned. "The bonding ritual is a happy occasion. An occasion for our tribes to bond - and flourish in that bond."

Dakeera cleared her throat loudly. He excused himself to greet her.

"It's good you could come, _beeko_. I feel like I might need assistance today. My tail was all itchy," he joked. "That's never a good sign."

She laughed. "Well, as they say in Skyrim, laughter is one surefire way of dealing with stress."

"I thought you were from Morrowind."

"Oh, there's no laughter in Morrowind."

She cleared her throat. "Should I have prepared to fight?" She looked at his outfit. "All I have with myself is this impractical dress."

"You look _taalil_ _."_ He flicked his tail nervously. "I only prepared for an extreme case. Actually, I was on my way to the tribes' suitors right now."

"I'll accompany you," Dakeera offered. "Let me only change into something more practical."

"Something _Saxhleel_ , hopefully?" Xukas asked with little hope in his voice.

She shook her head. "I'll see what I can do."

 **⊱ ── ── ───** ❈ **── ─── ── ⊰**

She had to trade her reed dress and a fair amount of healing potions, but she managed to acquire a set of leather armor in Bright-Throat style, almost matching Xukas', except undoubtedly female.

Armor, thank the Divines. More comfortable than any dress in Tamriel.

Both Argonians went to talk with the suitors. First were the Mire-Dancers, a tribe that Dakeera took a liking to immediately. They only argued that the others didn't want to begin the ritual.

Xukas spoke calmly, but he tapped his tail on the floor nervously. He did manage to convince them to send their suitor to the ritual and assure them that it would happen.

The next delegation was from the Black-Tongues, who made a rather grim impression on Dakeera. She had never seen mortals this devoted to Sithis, even in the Dark Brotherhood.

 _The Brotherhood_. She shuddered, thinking of the long scar on her belly. _Not a nice memory._

The Black-Tongues had a serious problem. Their suitor was dead. But it wasn't until she learned how it had happened that Dakeera got irritated. Apparently, they had made him drink a potion that was almost a poison. So he would be closer to Sithis.

Now Dakeera was flicking her tail too.

"There's no one to fill in for him?" She asked. The question was stupid; the priests of the Black-Tongues were all females. "Can't any one of you do it?"

"It's against the natural order. Only a male and a female can bond in the ritual. The Hist wouldn't allow it otherwise," one of them said. "We can't leave now. By Sithis, it would be a disgrace to our tribe!"

Dakeera pulled Xukas away from them.

"I don't think there's anything we can do about this. They're fools, but the deed is done," she said. "He's dead."

Xukas scratched his red-scaled throat. "This is unfortunate, _beeko_."

"While on the subject," Dakeera put her hands on her hips. "You keep calling me that - beeko. I have been meaning to ask you, what does it mean?"

He looked down, embarrassed. "Of course. You've spent most of your life in Tamriel, egg-sister. I forget."

"That's alright."

 _"Ojel_ \- people who do not speak the root's tongue. A kinder word for outsider." Now that he had said it, Martiish could remember other Argonians of Murkmire calling her that. _"Beek-ojel_ is what we call _ojel_ who are _Saxhleel_. It's not offensive, but it's considered rude in some circles. I wouldn't want to be rude to you. And it sounds nice. _Beeko_. Cute, you see?

She smiled, showing off a line of perfectly sharp white teeth. "You're too kind, friend-Xukas."

"I _am_ too kind... But this is my duty as the Root-Herald of _Wasseek-Haleel_ _."_ He crossed his arms. "I'm going to take his place."

"You mean... You're going to take part in the bonding ritual?" Dakeera didn't do much to hide her surprise.

 _"_ _Xhu_ _._ Yes." Xukas looked down. "I have to make sure the ritual goes as planned, and it is a matter of my honor to see it through."

"You're going to fill in for the _Kota-Vimleel_ tribe even through you're a Bright-Throat?" She was confused. The customs of Murkmire were unlike the rest of the Marsh.

"No, _beeko_ , I can't bond with someone from my tribe. We're egg-siblings, see. I will bond with one of the women from the Black-Tongue tribe."

Dakeera looked away. He didn't seem particularly happy with that decision.

"How is the ritual usually arranged? What are the requirements needed for a couple to become one?"

"It's complicated, _beeko_. Sometimes it's about an emotional connection, you see, but it can also be a purely physical attraction. The ritual binds two souls together in the Hist, with the Hist, as long as both souls are willing." Xukas waved a hand. "We _Saxhleel_ don't marry like the dryskins do. They talk about love and higher instances, and later end up not fulfilled with their bonding. If the Hist allows, two _Saxhleel_ are bound together and can never grow truly apart. The emotional connection can be strengthened. A physical attraction can become the foundation for something firm. Our souls are the Hist and they flow through the Hist... The ritual is when two souls become one."

She looked down at the village. Those people were counting on her friend and maybe she wasn't fully of an Argonian mentality, but she couldn't accept that he would bind with a random woman just to save his tribe's honor.

"Let me do it," she said firmly.

"What? Think of what you're saying. We can't." Xukas was clearly shocked by the very idea, but something in his eyes was telltale that it was also a relief. Still, he sought arguments. "We couldn't be together... You're a _mota_ _,_ a hunter. I'm a Root-Herald." He joined his hands together. "A... diplomat, you might." He looked at her shyly. "How would that work?"

She furrowed her brows, her scales rustling, as she focused.

 _"Ahi_..." she began unsurely, _"joon..._ _tarhin_ _mih_... _fanik_... _Ahi joon_ , Xukas- _reethiug_."

"Oh, _beeko_." He gave her about the saddest smile an Argonian could make. "This isn't your _fanik_. It's mine."

"You found me in the docks yesterday," she said. "The Hist sent you to find help with the suitors. _This_ is the help. _Ahi-sep_."

She hadn't thought it would be like this. Not once in her life did she think she would embrace her Argonian roots, not once did she think she would ever, even for a moment, truly feel like _Saxhleel_... She hadn't come here to rediscover her identity, all she had wanted was the treasure - and maybe a bit of adventure. And all it had taken was that stupid poisonous gas... _There_. _I've_ _got you, beeko. But next time, don't stop for useless relics._

She hadn't thought she could find herself in finding another person.

"We have emotional connection, Xukas- _naktis_. You've taught me what it means to be _Saxhleel-leel_ when I was lost. You've made me feel whole for the first time in my _s'hist_ , and if the Hist is willing and you allow... I will do what is in my power to make you feel the same way."

Xukas took in a deep breath through both his lungs and his gills. He opened his mouth, unable to speak for the first time since Dakeera had met him.

He bowed his head. "I would be honoured to bind with you, Dakeera- _zaloth_. Honoured."


End file.
